Mark 11:32 in 8 translations
8 distinct wordings, grouped by what each translation is trying to do. Differences from the King James text are marked below.
Early modern English
Seventeenth-century wording and sentence shape. Familiar, rhythmic, and the version most quotations you have heard are taken from.
But if we shall say, Of men; they feared the people: for all counted John, that he was a prophet indeed.
1611 / 1769 · Public domain · The Authorised Version, revised to the 1769 Blayney text. Includes the Apocrypha as printed in 1611.
Literal, word-for-word
Follows Hebrew and Greek word order and grammar closely, even where the English becomes stiff. Useful for seeing what the underlying sentence is doing.
But should we say, From men--they feared the people: for all verily held John to be a prophet.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
but should we say, Of men they feared the people; for all held of John that he was truly a prophet.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
But if we may say, From men,' --they were fearing the people, for all were holding John that he was indeed a prophet;
1898 · Public domain · The most extreme word-for-word rendering here, keeping Hebrew and Greek tense and word order at the cost of natural English.
Modern English
Contemporary vocabulary and punctuation, aiming for the sentence a present-day reader would write while staying close to the source.
If we should say, ‘From men’”—they feared the people, for all held John to really be a prophet.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
Yet can we say ‘human’?” They were afraid of the people, for everyone regarded John as undoubtedly a prophet.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
Yet can we say “human”?’ They were afraid of the people, for everyone regarded John as undoubtedly a prophet.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · The Commonwealth spelling edition of the Open English Bible. Identical wording to the US edition apart from spelling.
Simplified English
Built from a deliberately small vocabulary so the sense stays reachable for new readers and non-native speakers. Trades nuance for clarity.
But if we say, From men--they were in fear of the people, because all took John to be truly a prophet.
1949 · Public domain · Written with roughly a thousand basic English words plus a small Bible vocabulary. The plainest reading available here.
What changes between the King James and modern wording
The modern rendering is printed below with every word that differs from the King James text marked, so the actual divergence is visible rather than left for you to spot.
if we should say, ‘From men’”—they feared the people: for all held John, to really be a prophet
Word-for-word swaps
- shall→should
- they→From
- counted→held
- was→to
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.